“Please think it over carefully.”
The civil servant, dressed like a textbook serial killer, spoke with conviction.
“It’s a guaranteed job until the age of 65, with a grade-based salary system. Since it’s a specialized position, there are additional allowances.”
Why am I sitting here listening to what sounds like a job fair spiel from the Supernatural Disaster Management Bureau?
“If you’re prone to being drawn into supernatural phenomena, wouldn’t it be better to have financial stability and institutional protection?”
I already have that, thank you very much.
No matter how I look at it, I doubt a Grade-8 civil servant earns more than someone working for a major pharmaceutical corporation!
Still, there was no way I could blurt out that I worked for Daydream Inc.
I absolutely do not want to end up as a ‘person of interest’ under the Bureau’s watch!
‘I should have stuck to communicating by writing.’I was beginning to regret speaking out loud for the sake of faster, more persuasive, and impactful communication.
Feeling like I was starting to break out in a cold sweat, I opened my mouth carefully.
Since he seemed to think of me as a mere ‘civilian prone to supernatural phenomena’, I decided to play into that perception.
“This incident was truly terrifying, and I just wanted to do something about it. But I’m not someone capable of resolving supernatural phenomena. Being an agent? That’s absolutely impossible.”
“……”
The civil servant looked at me as if slightly dumbfounded.
Why?
“You thought the caretaker of the lodge was the cause of this phenomenon, so you terminated the contract to prevent further incidents, correct?”
“That’s… correct.”
“Then you independently made a judgment to fully resolve this supernatural phenomenon, did you not?”
“……”
“That’s an innate talent.”
No, it’s only because of the and wiki…
“I’m sorry, but I really can’t, sir. To be honest, I only did all of this because of the friend who came with me here…”
Please, just drop it.
“Besides, I’m not skilled enough to fight or have any special abilities to warrant becoming an agent.”
“Special abilities.”
The corners of the civil servant’s mouth lifted slightly.
“Those can be learned.”
“……!”
“You’ll be taught in detail after you’re appointed.”
Heck.
“What makes you so confident about this?”
“You possess a small silver badge shaped like a shield, don’t you?”
“……!!”
“That’s the reason.”
Ah, crap.
‘Sharp, aren’t you.’
I had considered this possibility but still feigned being more startled than I actually was.
“What? H-How did you…”
“That is a piece of persuasion equipment used by the Disaster Management Bureau. I heard it was once distributed to citizens who performed great deeds, but… this is my first time seeing someone able to use it.”
“Ah…”
“It can only be used by good people, making it something of a certification tool.”
And then he gave me a knowing look.
“Did you use it after taking it out of your pocket?”
This guy’s sharp.
‘Pretending I don’t know would make me look more suspicious.’
I decided to lean into it.
Remember, this only works for ‘good people’!
‘As long as I haven’t caused any trouble, they won’t confiscate it.’
Thankfully, my brain kicked into overdrive, and a seamless response popped out.
With a faintly bittersweet expression, as if there was a story behind it, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the small silver badge.
I made sure to present it in a way that felt natural, even mentioning the only legal route through which I could have obtained it.
“I inherited it from my family.”
From today onwards, my merch box is my family.
“They said I should use it when I needed a voice in an emergency…”
“I see.”
The civil servant nodded, looking at me with a mix of respect and pity.
“You must have had an admirable family.”
“……”
Are you misunderstanding that they’re ‘watching over me from the heavens’?
Well, technically, that’s not entirely wrong…
I tried not to think about the black merch box floating in the sky and continued speaking.
“They told me not to volunteer for dangerous tasks, and I want to keep that promise as much as possible.”
“……”
That was indeed something my parents said when they tried to dissuade me from entering the financial sector, and it’s true I didn’t exactly volunteer for this job either. Not a lie! Not a lie!
“…Understood.”
The civil servant looked at me with slight disappointment but backed off without further insistence.
“In that case, it can’t be helped.”
Phew.
And thus, the nerve-wracking job fair came to an end, with an unexpected bonus.
“If you ever face concerns or issues, feel free to contact me.”
As I was leaving the lodge, the civil servant handed me a contact number.
This time, though, it was presented in a different format.
Ryu Jaekwan
010-XXXX-XXXX
“This is my work number.”
Oh.
“The one I just gave you will be more useful than the previous card. The previous one might involve delays in dispatching a response team, and there’s no telling which type of agent might show up.”
In short, it was a get-out-of-a-creepypasta-free card.
I exchanged the previous contact information with this new one as if I were swapping out cassette tapes.
I never thought I’d end up with connections like this.
Now, before he’d try to make small talk, I should quickly… leave. Though he’d probably do a background check on me anyway.
‘In that case.’
I scratched the back of my head awkwardly, pretending to be a bit embarrassed.
“Actually, with our transactions through the Salmon Market, I was so scared I resorted to written communication… But next time we meet, I’d like to talk like this, with our voices.”
“Of course.”
“And… could my identity be kept confidential? It’s just that it makes me uncomfortable… and, well, scared.”
“……”
The civil servant was silent for a moment.
“If you leave things as they are now, that should be possible.”
He’ll let it slide.
Nice!
‘Does that mean he’ll leave me as an anonymous figure?’
Perfect. This left room for future dealings.
‘Next time, I’ll raise less suspicion and sell more food.’
“Take care on your way down.”
“You too, Agent.”
I shook hands with the civil servant, who then rode off on a bicycle.
Even his final attempt at persuasion as we parted was brushed off quite smoothly.
– Honestly, sir, I’m at my limit with situations like this. Even now, I feel like I’m barely hanging on. It would be too much for me.
And I truly meant it.
Baek Saheon, stop giving me that creepy, glaring look.
The civil servant, apparently just making a polite gesture, nodded and rode off without hesitation.
Along with their parting advice to leave before the ‘Bureau’s cleanup team’ arrived—a life-saving piece of wisdom.
‘Time to scram.’
I left the lodge, now bereft of the landslide debris and bus stop as if by magic, and began walking down the mountain trail.
‘Huuu.’
Only then did the tension begin to lift.
– Over the past few days, sacrificing your sleep and pouring your efforts into creating that artistic final shot… This Braun knows how hard you worked! Well done.
Yeah. It was grotesque, terrifying, and utterly exhausting…
‘To think he got sent into such a ghost story alone—this is why I’m not cut out for the Bureau.’
I couldn’t remember a day when Daydream Inc. seemed like a better company than today.
‘At least they pay in cash and points.’
There’s a saying that even servants should work for wealthy families, and this was the perfect example of that.
Though I wouldn’t say it’s particularly rewarding…
I glanced back at my colleague, who was equally entangled in this thankless job.
“Let’s just get out of here. This cursed lodge…!”
“……”
“Fuck, I got caught up in this nonsense that doesn’t even pay in either points or cash!”
“There’s something you need to say before we go.”
Baek Saheon clamped his mouth shut. Then, turning to me, he spoke in a highly defensive tone.
“I don’t think I owe you anything for this. After all, it’s not like I begged you to save me.”
Oh, really?